In the field of weight training, various exercises are performed with a barbell to provide additional loading of the body""s muscles. In one exercise, an athlete rests a barbell on his or her shoulders and lowers to a squatting position and then rises to a standing position to strengthen leg muscles, in particular the hamstring group. In another exercise, a user may raise a barbell from the floor to a position at chest height in order to build arm and back muscle strength. Unfortunately the use of a barbell, especially carried on the shoulders, gives rise to instability with the user possibly experiencing a loss of balance. Therefore, what is needed is a weight lifting simulation device which permits the user to carry out the exercises of lifting weights while avoiding the instability of carrying a barbell or other free weights.
This invention provides a safe and effective strength building apparatus for strengthening the shoulder girdle and hip girdle muscles. The apparatus may be employed to carry out various exercises which might have been less safely done with a barbell or with dumbbells. A rectangular open base frame has a slightly inclined foot plate mounted within the frame adjacent its first end, the foot plate being highest at the first end of the base frame. At the opposite second end of the base frame there is an upright bar which is centered on the second end and serves to stabilize an inclined mast which is mounted to a cross member of the base frame. The mast is inclined slightly toward the foot plate at about five degrees from vertical. A pair of generally horizontal stabilizing bars join the top of the mast to the top of the upright bar. An inclined support braces the upright bar, the inclined support being mounted at one end to the upright bar and at the other end to the cross member of the base frame.
A head member is captured on the mast and may be freely moved along the mast. The head member includes opposing side plates which house roller bearings which roll along the mast. Extending from the head member at a fixed somewhat inclined angle are a pair of weight arms which have a horizontal weight rod transversely mounted to their free ends. The weight arms are inclined upward from the head member at about thirty-five degrees above horizontal to allow sufficient clearance for circular Olympic-style weight plates to be placed on the transverse weight rod when the head member is resting at the bottom of the mast.
On the end of the head member opposite the extending weight arms and facing the first end of the base frame there is a cross bar fixed to the edges of the side plates of the head member. Extending generally horizontally from the cross bar are a pair of handle assemblies which extend toward first end of the base frame and the foot plate. The handle assemblies are identical and each includes a lever which extends laterally rearward from the cross bar on the head member. The free end of each lever has a vertically oriented bearing housing which retains a curved handle to the lever such that the curved handle is free to rotate about the vertical axis of the bearing mount. Each of the curved handles is generally U-shaped and has a vertical stem which is retained in the bearing mount. The handle assemblies are spaced apart such that a user positioned on the foot plate facing the mast may squat with the knees between the handle assemblies. The user may grasp the handgrips while in a squatting position and rise to a standing position while raising the head member on the mast and then may continue to raise his or her arms and shoulders to raise the handgrips about chin high, whereupon the user may reverse the movements and return the head member to the bottom of the mast.
It is an object of the invention to provide a strength building apparatus which may be used to simulate the lifting of barbell or dumbbells.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a strength building apparatus which may be used without risk of loss of balance of the user when rising from a squatting position.
It is also an object of the invention to provide a strength building apparatus which permits strengthening exercise of the back, shoulder and arm muscles with less risk of back strain.
It is yet a further objection of the invention to provide a strength building apparatus which permits the user to lift a weight from a squatting position while keeping the spine straight and subjecting the hamstring and hip girdle muscles to bear the lifting effort.
It is still a further object of the invention to provide a weight lifting simulator which encourages strength building exercises while maintaining a proper posture to avoid back injury and strain.
These and other objects of the invention will be understood from review of the drawings and the detailed description which follows.